Welcome to the Center Neighborhood!

The Center Neighborhood of Portland, Oregon is located in the central heart of Portland's historic inner eastside, right in the very geographic center of the City and its residential neighborhoods. Center is bounded on the west by 44th Avenue and the Laurelhurst neighborhood. On the east by 68th and 69th Avenues and the Montavilla neighborhood. The southern edge of Center is Burnside Street (separating it from the Mt. Tabor neighborhood), except in the area between 44th and 49th Avenues where the neighborhood extends south to Stark Street, which forms the boundary with the Sunnyside neighborhood. The Banfield Expressway (Interstate 84) forms its northern boundary, separating it from the Hollywood District, Rose City Park, and Madison South neighborhoods to the north. Center Neighborhood is home to:

• Providence Portland Medical Center
• The NE 60th Ave MAX station on the Blue Line and Red Line of Portland's award-winning light rail system
• Multnomah County Juvenile Justice Center
• Shogren House Museum
• The Wilbur Reed House
• The Southeast Precinct of the Portland Police Bureau
• The Multnomah County Penumbra Kelly building

Neighborhood activists created the first neighborhood park, Rosemont Bluff Natural Area, which is located across from the Donald E. Long School, on NE 68th Avenue. The history of our neighborhood has its beginnings at the very earliest date of Portland's development, growing rapidly from the late 1800s and into the early 1900s. The area was originally considered part of "north Mount Tabor", and was predominantly farmland. The second phase of development soon followed, with the construction of the Mount Tabor Villa streetcar line, which served our area and what was later renamed as the Montavilla area. This streetcar line, which ran along Glisan from about NE 28th to east of NE 82nd, was originally constructed in 1892, and quickly triggered a lot of in-fill development, particularly in the areas closest to the streetcar line. In the early 1970's local residents formed one of Portland's first Neighborhood Associations here; the young Association chose to name itself C.E.N.T.E.R., an acronym for "Citizens Engaged Now Toward Ecological Review". The neighborhood's concern continues to be maintaining its historical association with the predominant community design, comprised of single-family bungalow and cottage homes. Center today is made up of a diverse group of world citizens, and its combination of unpretentious working-class backbone, plus "creative class" influence, continues to evolve as many up-and-coming infill developments are adding to the character and historic aspects of our neighborhood.